I got a phone call today confirming a bigger problem in our sport of racing other than just the cost of gas and diesel to get the races. As we know there has been a lot going on with Homeland Security and securing Nitro methane. As of today there will be no contingency fuel supplier at races as we had in the past.

To complicate things there has been a long going battle between importing nitro by Pro Nitro and Dow Chemical and Wego. Well Don Schumacher sold his ProNitro business to Wego Chemical in January and it continues.

CompetitionPlus.com did a nice article on the subject check it out and be sure to mention DragBoatRacing.com.

They were discussing this on NHRA this weekend.  NHRA has postboned all testing until at least the US Nationals.  VP says it has enough Nitro right now up to Richmon.  Schumacher says it has NITRO but can only sit on it for so long and would help the sport as much as possible.  He said he talked to the teams and would have supply until it started being a business related decision. 

They mentioned that the Pharmacuetical industry is a big user, I did not know this.  Can anyone elaborate a little?

Nitromethane is used as a chemical intermediate in the manufacture of agricultural fumigants and pharmaceutical products. Hobby racing fuel for remote-controlled vehicles is also a key market; ANGUS fully supports the hobby racing fuels market for remote-controlled vehicles where formulations are sold at de-sensitized levels of 55 percent or less nitromethane.

The principal use of nitromethane is as a stabilizer for chlorinated solvents, which are used in dry cleaning, semiconductor processing, and degreasing. It is also used most effectively as a solvent or dissolving agent for acrylate monomers, such as cyanoacrylates (more commonly known as "super-glue

  To answer your question about how long we can go, I barrowed a drum of Nitro to make Red Bluff after exhausting all other sources.  At this time, we have not found any Nitro to run Chowchilla.  That is how bad it is.  Ron Soares, Toxic Rocket, TFH 460.

That's rediculous!!  I can't believe this is happening!!!